Making public money count

Menu

Views from the Conference: Meri Huws

If you look at every community, every age group and every cultural group in Wales, you will find people who speak Welsh. The Welsh language is an integral part of our nation’s life and vitality.

My role as Welsh Language Commissioner is to ensure that the Welsh language is treated no less favourably than the English language in Wales, and that people in Wales are able to live their lives through the medium of Welsh if they wish to do so.

What this means, is to look at the way services are provided to people, and ensure that the dignity and identity of individuals are respected as they receive those services.

Over the past two and a half years, since the role of the Welsh Language Commissioner was created, we have in different ways, both formally and informally, worked with the other Commissioners to ensure that there is no duplication in cases where our different functions overlap. The aim is to always protect people’s welfare and dignity by the Commissioner who is most suitable for the individual case.

I thank the Wales Audit Office for facilitating an open and honest discussion about the success of our working together so far, and to discuss the opportunities for sharing experiences, expertise, empathy and contacts better in the future.

About the author:

Before being appointed as Commissioner, Ms Huws chaired the Welsh Language Board from 2004-2011, and was also a member of the board from 1993 until 1997.

In 1999 she moved to work at Bangor University as Pro Vice-Chancellor, and was in the post for ten years. She served as the Pro Vice-Chancellor of the University of Wales Trinity St. David’s in 2009, before being appointed Welsh Language Commissioner in 2012.